A song of salvation

"Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice;
and he fell on his face at Jesus' feet, giving him thanks. Now he was a Samaritan." (Luke 17:16)

I'm still meditating on the Gospel from yesterday, and still blessed as I reflect on the two cries of the heart that reflect the fullness of saving faith. One without the other is discordant or unresolved, lacking harmony and the beauty of wholeness and peace that comes from a vital connection with Jesus the Savior and Lord. It's like a "sustained" chord, that is just begging to resolve to the main, major chord. There's a tension as you "pull" the middle note up a half-step, that is beautiful in and of itself, but really wants to be completed by letting that middle note back down to its normal place.

Luke writes of two voices, two shouts, that are both essential to and expressive of faith. This story is a further reflection on faith, in response to the apostles asking "Increase our faith!" (v. 5) While faith is the trusting obedience of a servant doing what is commanded with even the tiny amount entrusted to him or her (vs. 6-10), there are other nuances to faith which are beautifully reflected in this story. There is the voice that says "Master, Jesus, have mercy on us." Which is followed by the word of Jesus, "go." There is the voice which returns to give praise to God and thanks to Jesus. Which again is followed by the word of Jesus, "go."

Simply saying "unclean, unclean" is not enough to close the distance between us who are dis-eased and others and God. The cry for mercy is an essential element of the faith that heals and closes the distancing effect of our dis-ease. And it was obedient trust which issued in cleansing and healing. But Jesus implies there is still something missing, the word of wholeness, of salvation, is given only after the one (who had the extra distance of his race to cover as well as the distance his disease caused) returned and drew near to Jesus in thanksgiving.

There is a poetic flow to this story. A balancing in the two parts, a filling up to fullness that we encounter in the second part. The one voice "Mercy!" is balanced by the second voice "Thank you!". And both are stabilized, or grounded, in a third voice, that of the Master saying "go". Don't stay in that place of pleading for mercy, and don't stay in the safe, comfortable, happy place of praise. Jesus seems to say, "Trust me, obey me. Go."

And as you go, keep singing that song with its two parts, the tension of the first chord that beautifully resolves in the second. It's that fullness that not only saves you, but will bring others into saving faith as well. The healthy disciple does not just give voice, but moves the body...